PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Effingham Street is down to one lane in each direction after a sewer force main break in downtown Portsmouth.

A sanitary sewer leak was reported Friday around 4:15 p.m. near the intersection of Effingham Street and Firehouse Lane. City spokeswoman Dana Woodson said the cause was a concrete pipe that backed up.

It took crews with the Hampton Roads Sanitary District and the city of Portsmouth hours to find the source of the back up — a sewer force main break.

On Saturday, one lane in each direction reopened on Effingham Street between London Boulevard and North Street. Woodson said the traffic pattern would be in place until at least Wednesday.

Sewage trucks were mobilized for a pump and haul operation at an area pump station to make sure sewer service is not interrupted.